Wasting time

(Reuters) - "U.S. workers say they squander over two hours a day at the workplace, with surfing the Web, socializing with co-workers and simply "spacing out" among the top time-wasting activities, according to a survey released on Monday" by America Online and Salary.com.

I believe teachers should work more. I have no problem with extending the school day until 5 o'clock. I have no problem with extending the school year from the current minimum of 180 days of instruction mandated by law to something more like 240 days (with, of course, an equivalent increase in pay).

*But* to hear that my counterparts in the corporate world, who generally make significantly more money than I do, are wasting on average 2 hours of their day every day, makes me shake my fist in the air.

During my school day, I do not have the luxury of wasting time. I generally arrive at school between 7:30 and 7:45. On a typical day (though, really, there is no typical day when you're a teacher), from the moment I step foot on campus until at least 5 o'clock, I'm going nonstop. When I first arrive there are 2 or 3 kids who've been dropped off already, waiting outside my classroom, wanting help with homework. The official school day begins at 8:25. From then until 3 I'm on my feet delivering huge amounts of complex information in (hopefully) understandable ways to my students. During morning recess and lunch recess I'm usually babysitting kids who haven't finished their homework (there's always at least one). When the day ends for the kids at 3, I then have coaching or a staff meeting or grade level planning or literacy training, depending on the day. At 5:00 I actually get a break, for the first time all day, but I still haven't prepped for the next day and I still have papers to review or grade for my 49 students. Inevitably, I take work home with me.

Consider also that I spend hundreds of dollars each school year of my own money on classroom supplies because my school (like many others) is so under-resourced.

Of course, somewhat paradoxically, I'm also considerably happier in my job than most office workers are.